Inside Athletics

Lumberjack News from the AD, Edition 29

Welcome to the bi-weekly summer
edition of Lumberjack News from the Athletic Director for our
alumni, boosters, fans and former student-athletes.

NFL LOCKOUT IS OVER…

The full 2011 Arizona Cardinals
camp schedule is still to be released, but the team will begin
training camp Thursday when players officially report to the team's
Tempe facility. Players will undergo physicals the next day and
then head to Flagstaff and Northern Arizona University.

Practice begins at NAU Saturday
afternoon, and the team will also have an afternoon practice Sunday
as the Cards get their first on-field work since the 2010 season
ended in San Francisco in early January.

Practices will be held on the grass
fields across from the Walkup Skydome on South San Francisco
Street. In the event of inclement weather, practices may be moved
inside the Skydome, which is in the final stages of a major
renovation. Those practices will be closed to the public. All other
training camp practices are open to the public at no charge. For a
detailed listing of practice dates and times, visit AZCardinals.com. The site also
includes visitor information, with a map for parking
at NAU.

The return of the Cardinals is good
news for sports fans and the local economy. An economic impact report
prepared last year by NAU said that more than 38,000 people
attended training camp sessions or the Red and White Scrimmage, 81
percent of them being out-of-town visitors. As a result, the camp
contributed nearly $7 million to the local economy, with a total
impact of nearly $10 million.

Less easy to calculate, but no less
important for NAU, are the intangible benefits of an NFL team
spending a few weeks on campus. Not only does the event draw
national media coverage (for example, NAU recently being named "Best
training camp venue"), but the daily visits to campus by
Cardinals fans from around the state and region may also contribute
to future enrollment at the university.

DR. GEORGE
HERSHEY…

Congratulations to Dr.
George Hershey for his selection into the Flagstaff Sports
Foundation Hall of Fame. Hershey will be inducted on Aug. 2 at the
Little America Hotel. The event begins with a no-host bar at 5:30
p.m. For ticket information, contact Dave Brown at 523-3440.
Tickets are $60 per person or $600 for a table of 10.

WINE AND DINE AROUND THE
CORNER…

The Wine and Dine in the
Pines Special Event sold out on Monday. Special thanks to
Kevin and Scott Heinonen of the
Tinderbox and Alliance Beverage
for their support of the event. I also would like to thank our
honorary waiters and waitresses: Andy Johns,
Nikki Huffman,Jeana Fucillo and
Kim Bruno for their efforts. The 15th
Annual Wine and Dine
in the Pines will be held at the Hart Prairie Lodge at Arizona
Snowbowl and is less than a month away. General event ticket prices
are available for $75 per person, but are limited due to venue
capacity. You must be 21 for admittance, no children or pets
allowed. To purchase tickets to Wine & Dine in the Pines or for
more information, contact Director of Annual Giving Andrew Kempe at
928-523-7805 or andrew.kempe@nau.edu.

This is the last week to take
advantage of the Early Bird special for football.
Purchase your season tickets by July 31 and receive a free ticket
for the Arizona vs. NAU game in Tucson on September 3. Great
seats are still available so call 928-523-5353 today to renew or
pick out your seats for 2011 NAU Football. Remember, purchase your
season tickets for this year and we will guarantee that your season
ticket price will not increase over the next 4 years! With a
six-game home schedule featuring a visit from defending national
champs Eastern Washington along with Big Sky Conference rival
Montana, you won't want to miss any of the action in the newly
renovated Skydome this year.

Congratulations to wide receiver
Daiveun Curry-Chapman (Arizona Cardinals) and
safety Matt Estrada (Jacksonville Jaguars). They
both agreed to sign free agent contracts with NFL teams on Monday
and are expected to sign with their teams this week after the
Tuesday deadline when the free agent signing period begins. Welcome
to Flagstaff to our newest women’s basketball signees:
Raven Anderson (Tempe, Ariz. – Chandler HS),
Erikka Banks (Fresno, Calif. – Clovis East
HS) Chanel Smith (Oxnard, Calif. – Santa
Clara HS), Jasmine Sneed (Tarzana, Calif. –
Sierra Canyon HS) and Paige Haynes(Riverside, Calif. -- San Bernardino Valley
College). Read the complete release on our website. Fall is
in the air with our teams reporting next week: Soccer on Aug. 4,
volleyball on Aug. 8 and football on Aug. 9. Today is move in day
for the Health and Learning Center for our coaches and Thursday the
athletic training room and equipment rooms move into the
Skydome.

STUDENT-ATHLETE SPOTLIGHT…

Congratulations to football
student-athlete Robert
Watson, who has worked on the launch of the new University
website with the school’s marketing department this summer.
The Long Beach, Calif., native redshirted his initial season at
NAU. He plans to study criminal justice and was a 2011 Golden Eagle
Scholar-Athlete recipient. SID Steve Shaff will be highlighting him
on the Athletics website this week.

ASK THE
AD…

If you have a question, please send
me an email to askthead@nau.edu and I will answer
selected emails in the next edition of the Lumberjack News.

If you know someone who would like
to receive the newsletter, please send their email address to Steven.Shaff@nau.edu and he
will add their name to the distribution list.